BERGEN TUNNEL

Charlie,

I currently go through or should I say come out of that end 3 to 4 times a week.  Was wondering if that is the north or south portal.  Im not sure which one they built first??  Maybe you know.

I included a few modern photos on what you see when you exit the tunnel.

Factory south of Hoboken after exiting Bergen Tunnel.  Light Rail in foreground.

Pavonia in Background.  Arrow Muc in Foreground.

Clock Tower at Hoboken Terminal

I think it is the north tunnel which was built first.

The south portal was constructed in 1906

For this westerner, would someone be kind enough to help me understand which road owned the track through the Bergen tunnel as well as which road(s) ran on that track?  Which lines use it today?

Tom,

The Delaware Lackawanna, and Western originally had to build that tunnel, in order to gain access to the Hudson River at Hoboken, New Jersey. Just going from memory now, sometime in the mid 1950s, the Erie Railroad closed there Jersey City passenger terminal, and cut a deal with the Lackawanna to use their Hoboken Terminal.

I believe that NJDOT, the commuter entity that operates all the former Erie, DL&W, and Jersey Central commuter lines, still uses those twin-bore tunnels.

Charlie

are you one of the guys standing at the back of that car in the first picture ????

Thanks. Great photo. Can't get enough of those historic shots.

Tom,

The Bergen Tunnels were constructed by The Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railroad (DL&W) or more commonly know as "The Lackawanna" to reach the New Jersey side of the Hudson River.  Most major north east railroads built passenger and freight terminals on the west side of the river and then used car floats and ferries to reach NYC.

The Lackawanna generally had a main line from Hoboken to Buffalo NY by way of Scranton, PA and Binghamton, NY with several branch lines.  A portion of those lines were electrified in the 1930s for commuters in northern NJ.

The Lackawanna was the first rail road to extensively use concrete in bridges and viaducts with many of those viaducts still standing today.  In 1956-57 the Erie railroad transferred their passenger ops to Lackawanna's Hoboken Terminal and the two railroads merged in 1960 becoming the Erie-Lackawanna (EL).

The rail road declared bankruptcy in the early 1970's and was folded into Conrail.  By 1983 NJDOT had taken over all commuter rail operations in Northern NJ and formed NJ Transit.  The former Lackawanna and Erie lines which run into Hoboken Terminal are part of the Hoboken Division of NJ Transit.  Over the past 40 years NJ Transit has integrated the entire rail system so former Lackawanna lines actually run direct to NY Penn Station.  I actually take a NJ North Coast Train which travels via the NE Corridor line and then switches to the former Lackawanna line at Kearny Junction which then ends in Hoboken Terminal.  Confusing isn't it!  Got to www.njtransit.com for a current system map.

The current Morris and Essex Line and the Montclair-Boonton Line are the former Lackawanna lines and The Main and Bergen Lines are former Erie lines just to give you an idea.

I have attached three maps of the former DLW to give you an idea what the system looked like in the 30's and 40's.  The map of Hoboken has drastically changed with only the tracks into the Passenger Terminal remaining.  Also the turntable/roundhouse is no longer with us.  Take a look at Goggle Maps to give you an idea what it looks like today.

I have done a bit of reading on this rail road lately as I plan on using it as my prototype when I start my layout in the next 4-6 months.

Best Regards and Happy Railroading

in the latter half of the 19th century, no less than six railroads were situated on the west shore of the North River across from Manhattan island. several of them had to blast through Bergen Hill, some of the hardest rock anywhere, to get there. The PRR, DLW, B&O, Erie, Reading & CNJ all came to the riverside/harborside. At one time, from the palisades to greenville, 80+% of the shoreline was devoted to railroad property.

Hot Water, met jet, Chris, thanks for enlightening me.

I also now understand the Lackawanna electric lines better now.

and Long Live Miss Phoebe Snow.....

What about Candice and Edgar?